Biglaw corporations proceed to mandate that attorneys have a bodily presence within the workplace, and in latest occasions, these mandates have utilized firmwide, not simply to particular follow teams. One of many final occasions that exact follow teams have been singled out to spend extra time within the workplace was almost three years in the past — however for one high agency’s company attorneys, that’s all about to alter.
Sources inform us that DLA Piper — a agency that introduced in $4,239,832,000 gross income in 2024, placing it at No. 3 on the Am Regulation 100 — has elevated its in-person attendance coverage to 4 days for its U.S. company attorneys, up from the agency’s three-day mandate that was instituted final 12 months. That coverage gave follow group leaders discretion to regulate attendance necessities primarily based on present wants. Andrew Gilbert, the agency’s U.S. company follow chair, defined his rationale for the transfer in an electronic mail, saying that the elevated face time would “help our tradition of collaboration, improve mentorship alternatives, and strengthen progress and improvement.” The brand new attendance necessities will probably be cited in affiliate evaluations.
Frank Ryan, DLA Piper’s world co-chair, world co-CEO, and Americas chair, advised Law.com that “[s]ome of it’s associates wanting extra in-office time, a few of it’s simply work ranges. For the company group, it felt like an excellent time to do that.”
It’s unknown at the moment whether or not another follow teams have been affected by this new attendance mandate.
Fairly a couple of Biglaw corporations at the moment are requiring 4 days within the workplace firmwide, together with the likes of Davis Polk; Latham; Paul Weiss; Ropes & Gray; Simpson Thacher; Skadden; Vinson & Elkins; Weil Gotshal; WilmerHale; White & Case; Sidley; Hogan Lovells; A&O Shearman; and Covington. Sullivan & Cromwell has taken its attendance coverage one step additional, requiring attorneys to work from the workplace 5 days every week.
As quickly as you discover out about workplace attendance plans at your agency, please email us (topic line: “[Firm Name] Workplace Reopening”) or textual content us at (646) 820-8477. We at all times maintain our sources on tales nameless. There’s no must ship a memo (if one exists) utilizing your agency electronic mail account; your private electronic mail account is okay. If a memo has been circulated, please make sure to embody it as proof; we wish to put up full memos as a service to our readers. You possibly can take a photograph of the memo and connect as an image if you’re frightened about metadata in a PDF or Phrase file. Thanks.
DLA Piper Increases In-Office Requirement for US Corporate Lawyers [Law.com]
Staci Zaretsky is the managing editor of Above the Regulation, the place she’s labored since 2011. She’d love to listen to from you, so please be at liberty to email her with any ideas, questions, feedback, or critiques. You possibly can observe her on Bluesky, X/Twitter, and Threads, or join together with her on LinkedIn.